part one
There are many different ways of making polite requests in English.
Would you…? / Could you…? / Would you like to…?
If you are asking other people to do things, you would normally use Would you or Could you + infinitive. Would you like to…? is also a very polite way of suggesting or requesting something, politer than Do you want to…? Compare the following:
Would you please bring your library books back today as they are needed by another borrower?
Could you join us on Saturday? Tom's back from Sydney and we're having a barbecue.
Would you like to join us on Saturday? We're having a barbecue in the back garden.
Would you care to join us on Saturday? We're celebrating Tom's return from Sydney.
Do you want to join us on Saturday? We're having a bash in the garden.
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Would you like…? + infinitive /
Would you mind…?
If you want to sound particularly polite, or if you think the answer may be negative, you can also use Would you mind + verb-ing as the preferred alternative to Could you…? Would you mind…? literally means: Would you object to…?
Would you mind locking the door when you leave? ~ No, not at all!
Could you please lock the door when you leave? ~ Yes, certainly!
If you're not busy at the moment, would you mind helping me with my homework?
If you're not busy at the moment, could you give me a hand with my homework?
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